Faith & Family - Cullman, Alabama Spring 2020 - Page 34

greatest honor I have ever
received.”
At KDS, Teal taught
math and coached basketball
and baseball. His teams
competed in county and state
championships, which earned
him his place in the Marshall
County Sports Hall of Fame
36 years later.
Teal became principal of
KDS in 1976 at age 28 and
held the position for 17 years.
He said people would often
ask if he missed coaching, and
he really did, but he missed
teaching math more. Still, he
loved being principal.
“In fact,” Teal said, “I
have loved every job I have
ever had. When I sacked
groceries as a college student,
I really enjoyed that. I have
had a blessed life.”
Joe and Bonnie Teal have been married for 52 years.
God’s plan
Teal said he always thought God
placed him at KDS for what he was
to accomplish there, but as he reflects
back, he thinks it may have been
a way to place him in First Baptist
Church at Grant. There, he served
as lay speaker and was ordained into
the ministry. Without the leadership
of some godly men there, he does not
think he would be where he is today.
In 1993, Teal retired from KDS.
That same year, the Marshall County
Board of Education hired him as
assistant superintendent and director
of special services, where he worked
with students who had developmental
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Faith & Family | April 2020
or physical disabilities.
Teal called it a challenging but
rewarding job. He was later asked
to be principal at Guntersville High
School. Teal heard there was division
among the faculty and other problems
in the school, but he said he wasn’t
interested in hearing the problems
rehashed.

He has a philosophy that he often
shares, “Let people be people and let
Jesus be Lord,” and that is what he
tried to follow.
Teal was called as principal of
Westminster Christian Academy in
Huntsville shortly after. He hated to
leave so soon, but he had rededicated
his life to Christ and told God he
would be willing to go wherever God
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